LA Clippers given 25-year-old example to warn against fighting NBA over Kawhi Leonard punishment

The LA Clippers are not going to take the NBA's severe punishment for their signing of Kawhi Leonard, but they've been told that it is a bad idea.

The Clippers were fined $30 million and five first-round picks, along with suspensions for owner Steve Ballmer and GM Lawrence Frank.

However, Ballmer and the Clippers put out a lengthy statement promising to fight this decision to get the punishment reduced or eliminated entirely.

Brian Windhorst explains why LA Clippers could make things worse by fighting NBA decision

Speaking on SportsCenter, ESPN analyst Brian Windhorst explained why the LA Clippers shouldn't try to push back on the NBA's punishment.

He pointed to the example of the Minnesota Timberwolves' dealings with Joe Smith and how, after receiving a similar penalty, the franchise had their punishment reduced thanks to cooperation

"If they are indeed allowed to trade Kawhi Leonard, and there's nothing in today's ruling that would prevent them from doing so, they can instantaneously recruit 2 first-round draft picks for him.

"They can get value for him. The second thing is, this has often been compared to what happened with the Minnesota Timberwolves with Joe Smith back in 2000…

"The Timberwolves were hit with a five first-round pick penalty just like this. But in that case, the Timberwolves cooperated. And a year later they were given back a first-round pick, and two years later they were given back another first-round pick. Their eventual penalty was only three first-round picks.

"In this report, the investigators indicate that they are not done and that there could be more. And so I know that the Clippers are very angry, and they want to defend themselves, and Steve Ballmer wants to be exonerated.

"I think this is a harsh penalty that could be worse and could potentially get better over time."

Similar to Leonard, Joe Smith and the Timberwolves were accused of circumventing the salary cap when he signed as a free agent ahead of the 1999-2000 season.

As a result of this, the Timberwolves were stripped of their first-round picks from 2001 to 2005. However, due to their cooperation with the NBA at the behest of then-commissioner David Stern, the Timberwolves were granted their 2003 and 2005 first-round picks back.

There could be a scenario where the Clippers, if they do cooperate with Adam Silver and the NBA, could have their penalty reduced in the years to come.

However, trying to push back against Silver after he handed one of the strictest and most severe punishments of his tenure as president could hurt the franchise in the long run.